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A woman is tipped to become the most powerful judge in Britain with the
announcement this week that the present Lord Chief Justice is to retire.

Lady Justice Hallett, 62, is the clear front-runner to step into the shoes of
Lord Judge, who is to retire next autumn after five years in the post.

If she succeeds, she would break centuries of tradition: the position of Lord
Chief Justice has never been held by a woman in this country, although women
have occupied the post in Canada and New Zealand.

Court of Appeal
Published: March 3, 2015
In re M and Others (Children) (Abduction: Child’s Objections)
Before Lord Justice Richards, Lady Justice Black and Lord Justice Ryder
Judgment: January 27, 2015
When a court was determining whether, for the purposes of article 13 of the
Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction 1980,
a child who objected to being returned to his country of habitual residence
had attained the age and degree of maturity at which it was appropriate to
take account of his views, the exercise required was a straightforward
examination of whether the terms of the Convention had been satisfied
without the use of any technical subsidiary tests